Tanya Moiseiwitsch Playhouse Sheffield – until Saturday 17th August
Reviewed by Carol Crann
4****
I would challenge anyone to find a much more diverse cast and performance than that of Something Old, Something New.
It is a Sheffield People’s Theatre Production, a team that – by their own description – are an ‘intergenerational theatre company for anyone aged 12+ with a shared passion for creating great theatre – both on stage and behind the scenes’.
The story is all about a couple who, after a bit of a whirlwind romance, decide to get married in Natalie’s (Ezzie Nettleingham) hometown of Sheffield. Her husband to be, Alex (Mark Kenny) and all his friends and family have travelled up from Surrey for the event, and some are clearly quite amused by the trip – judging by the fake Yorkshire accents and the derogatory comments.
The audience are greeted jovially as they walk in, by the wedding party. This, for me, is where the humour started as I watched members being accosted by the rather over enthusiastic best man and groomsmen. Some played along, some looked terrified, and some even rose to the challenge and posed for the wedding photographer. It immediately set the tone.
Because what transpired from that point onwards is something that can probably best be described as chaos… Both families, clearly quite dysfunctional in their own ways, are completely different, and as the story unfolds the gap between them widens. Tricia, Natalie’s Mum gets embroiled in a situation with her estranged husband and her toy-boy with a crush, Raj. Patricia and her husband, Alex’s parents, show distain for virtually everything; the city – which it turns out she originally came from – as well as the rules, and more importantly other people’s feelings.
Throughout the performance there is a great deal of humour delivered by the various members of the cast, with different levels of success and comic timing, and the majority of it was well received by the audience judging by the belly laughs around us.
Set changes were achieved by a group of young people dressed in bright body suits, all of whom worked with over exaggerated gestures and actions, another aspect of the show that was meant to – and successfully did – cause some hilarious moments.
As the story evolves, some misfortune occurs at the venue planned for the wedding breakfast, and it has to be moved to a local community centre, one that was recently closed down and previously run by Natalie. Using a highly strung professional chef for the catering, and a band who had broken up because of artistic differences – that had clearly not been resolved – was obviously a recipe for disaster.
The level of ability in this hugely diverse cast was also varied – with some clearly being very talented and able to portray their character with ease. For those less able in that department they definitely made up for it with enthusiasm.
This show is a real triumph for inclusivity, and successfully blends a show that is both full of humour and featuring a story that has a real feel-good factor. For a local there are also lots of brilliant references to the city, and it all leaves you with that delightfully warm, fuzzy feeling as you exit.